


Love Like This

by takeitoffhemmo



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Bottom Michael, Clemmings, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Highschool AU, Luke goes for his man, M/M, Michael Being A Dick, Muke - Freeform, Smut, Top Luke, lots of pining, only at first, side cashton
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-25
Updated: 2016-06-21
Packaged: 2018-06-10 13:43:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6959020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/takeitoffhemmo/pseuds/takeitoffhemmo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>"Ashton guesses one day Michael got fed up with it because he told those fuckers off and after they still didn't stop he punched one of them. It wasn't the greatest punch (he was like 5, alright?) but it was enough to make everyone leave Luke alone."</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Michael's been Luke's sort of protector for as long as anyone can remember, but he refuses to befriend Luke. Luke has been helplessly pining for Michael for as long as he can remember, and Ashton's fed up with it. Everything changes when both boys end up at one of Jack's famously outrageous parties.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I originally got the idea for this while listening to Jean Jacket by The Summer Set and it was going to be really emo but now I think it's mostly just mischievous. And way longer than I intended.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guys I'm so ugly I forgot to add the tw for a brief mention of the F slur IM SO SORRY

"Luke, wait up! Luke! Lukey? Hemmo? What the -- ?" Ashton asks and follows his friend's gaze across the green quad to none other than Michael Clifford. 

Ashton rolls his eyes and scoffs. Of fucking course Luke is staring at Michael Clifford. What else would have his full attention? Luke has been helplessly pining after Michael for as long as Ashton could remember. It all started in kindergarten. Luke was an easy target (admittedly still is) and some kids thought it'd be funny to steal his snack at snack time. Okay, fine, Luke asked for a new one and the teacher didn't mind so he got a new snack. That wasn't the problem. The problem was when they'd start taking Luke's snack everyday, and then they'd push him around on the playground. Ashton guesses one day Michael got fed up with it because he told those fuckers off and after they still didn't stop he punched one of them. It wasn't the greatest punch (he was like 5, alright?) but it was enough to make everyone leave Luke alone. Most people still don't bother messing with Luke because of that. One time sophomore year two guys wrote "fag" on Luke's locker and the next day one of them had a black eye, the other a broken nose. A note was taped to Luke's cleaned locker that just said "you're welcome." Luke thanked Michael later that day but Michael acted like it never happened. Everyone knows Michael did it. 

Ashton supposes with Michael's seemingly passionate mission to protect Luke he can't really blame his friend for his clearly unrequited love. Michael's bi, another well-known fact and he's been around the block many, many times. Every time he's barely given Luke anything more than a fleeting glance. Luke's barely made it around the block once and he pined for Michael the whole time. It's pathetic and Ashton feels bad for his friend. Luke deserves better. 

"Luke, give it up. He doesn't like you more than a friend or protector or whatever," Ashton says with a sigh. He feels helpless. Luke's so gone for Michael and Michael couldn't care less. 

Luke shakes his head and then refocuses on Ashton. "He must feel something. Why else would he mess with people who bully me? Why would he care to do that if he didn't feel something for me? Why, Ash, huh?" 

"Maybe he just has a savior complex!" Ash exclaims in exasperation. 

"For only me?" Luke counters with an eyebrow raised. 

"Yeah, for only you. It's selective," Ash replies with a sigh. 

Luke grins knowing he's won this round and then nods in the direction of Michael. "Should I try talking to him?" 

Ashton looks back at Michael again, surrounded by his usual crowd, and contemplates Luke's question. On most days Michael just follows Luke with his eyes if they pass in the hallway but sometimes Luke can get him to say hi. Today, does not seem like a conversation kind of day. Michael is never going to talk to Luke in front of his "friends." 

"Don't try. Come on, let's go," Ashton says and then tugs Luke in the opposite direction of his bane.

They end up at a coffee shop a few blocks from school and Luke is moping yet again. 

"I don't understand why I couldn't just try to say hi," he mumbles for the twentieth time. 

"Because he wouldn't have given you any attention and then you'd be even more sad," Ashton replies and then slides a chocolate muffin across the table to his friend. 

Luke begins peeling the wrapper off the muffin absentmindedly while simultaneously glaring at Ashton. He knows Ashton is right and he hates it. "Shut up," he grumbles and then eats the muffin. He just wishes there was a way to get Michael's undivided attention for more than three seconds. He really thinks Michael is cool and he wants Michael to like him too. Shouldn't Michael want to get to know better the guy he keeps randomly saving? 

Ashton sighs loudly from across the table and Luke glances back at his friend. "Whah?" he asks around a mouthful of muffin. 

"It's time to set you up with someone else. This time it won't end terribly like last time. This time you're going to get over Michael and commit to this new person, okay? I'm going to help so much more than last time. You need to do this. It's honestly for your own good. Michael refuses to give you the time of day and you deserve so much better than that, okay?" he says and there's so much determination in his expression Luke knows he's not messing around. 

Luke swallows the muffin and attempts to smile. "Okay." 

\-- 

Ashton knows that he suggested Luke find someone new but he wishes he had someone in mind before he brought it up. Now he's desperately trying to find a guy good enough for Luke. He doesn't even know where to begin. Most of the decent guys he knows are taken. He needs to figure out something quick though because he's tired of seeing Luke unhappy and he's tired of Michael dragging Luke along. Maybe he should just beat up Michael. No, no. That'd end terribly for himself. 

"Hey Ash, there's a party this weekend at Jack's, do you wanna go?" Alex, one of Ashton's other friends, asks him, and effectively shakes Ashton from his thoughts. 

"Uh, sure. I guess. Can Luke come?" Ashton asks suddenly getting an idea. 

"Yeah, totally. Everyone's invited. You know how Jack is," Alex replies with a laugh. 

Ashton laughs as well. Jack is a party animal and his parties are wild. "Yeah, I do." 

"Alright then. I'll see ya around!" Alex says as he grabs his bag to walk home. Him and Ashton were supposed to be studying in the library but they barely did anything. Ashton was too distracted with trying to find a guy for Luke and Alex just has a general lack of motivation. 

"See ya," Ash says to Alex's retreating form. He grabs his phone and texts Luke before collecting his things as well to also exit the library. He begins walking towards Luke's house and finds himself unable to keep his smile contained. He knows how he's going to set Luke up. 

\-- 

"No! You're crazy! I can't do that! Ash, you know I can't do that. I refuse. You can't make me. Nope," Luke exclaims and then crosses his arms and pouts. He knows Ash can't refuse the pout. 

Ashton groans and turns away from his friend. It's really hard to resist Luke when he pouts. "You have to do this! You need to get over Michael and this is the best way. Just find a nice guy and talk him up. Make out or whatever. Just stop thinking about Michael. This will work." 

Luke rolls his eyes even though he knows Ashton can't see and sighs. "I can't just get over him, Ash. It's like he's part of me. He's stuck in my veins and I kinda don't ever want to let him go. I know he doesn't really show much appreciation for me but he must feel something. He wouldn't do what he does if he didn't feel _something_." 

Now Ashton sighs and then turns to sit by Luke on his bed. "I know it's hard but I hate seeing you like this. I just want you to be happy and I know you deserve so much better than Michael." 

Luke offers a sad smile to Ash and then says, "I know, but I really want to give him a chance." 

"Please give my idea a chance and if it doesn't work then we'll do everything we can to get Michael, okay?" Ashton bargains and prays Luke will take the deal. 

After a moment Luke nods. "Yeah, okay. Let's do it." 

\-- 

Michael doesn't care much for Luke Hemmings. He hates seeing the kid pushed around but his feelings don't really go past there. Luke's kind of strange and...noodley, for lack of a better word, and Michael's not really into that. Maybe in another life they could've been friends. He knows they have the same music taste because he's seen Luke at some of the same concerts as him but it's somehow not enough to truly befriend the long-legged boy. He knows it probably seems weird that he protects the guy but never talks to him, but for some reason Michael feels like being friends with Luke would end terribly. He also wishes Luke would stop giving him puppy eyes whenever they make eye contact. Michael doesn't want to ruin Luke. He wants Luke to move on and be happy with someone who isn't him. He hoped being cold and distant would work but Luke is relentless. 

Michael is high yet again and kind of wishes he wasn't. Usually getting high helps him unwind but today it's just making him more on edge. He hates it. He needs a better distraction. He fumbles for his phone, unlocks it and opens his text messages. He finds the last girl he hung out with and sends her a quick text. 

mike: wanna hagn out?  
mike: hang* 

random party girl: sure. c u soon

mike: coo l

Michael sighs and lays back on his bed. He's glad his parents aren't home right now because he's truly a mess. He's high and it's terrible and he just invited a girl over that he can't remember the name of. He hopes she doesn't mind. Or says it before he has a chance to reveal his ignorance. 

After what feels like an eternity in hell, Michael's door opens and beautiful brunette walks in. She's wearing a light blue t-shirt that looks really soft, and black shorts that compliment her legs. She's really pretty and Michael wishes he knew her name. 

"Hi," she says and slowly walks over to his bed. She can probably smell the weed, Michael distantly thinks as she subtly sniffs the air before barely sitting on his bed. "Are you okay?" she asks, concern evident in her eyes. 

Michael nods, or at least he hopes he does, and replies, "Yeah." 

She purses her lips before slowly nodding herself. "Okay. What did you want to do?" 

Michael slides closer to her and smiles gently. He really hopes it's a gentle smile. He hates coming off as a complete ass unless it's towards Luke's bullies. Somewhere in the back of his mind though he's aware of how douchey this whole scenario is. The Michael sitting very close to a pretty girl doesn't seem to care though. He isn't really sure what he wants though. Why did he invite her? 

"I, uh, wanna make out?" he asks ineloquently and wishes lightning would strike him dead right this second. He's on a bad trip and it's messing with him more than it should. 

"Um, I'm not sure..." she begins and Michael groans. "What?" she snaps when Michael begins glaring at her. 

"Just like one minute of making out and if it sucks we can stop, okay?" he suggests. God, he sounds so gross right now. Why is she here? Oh yeah, he needed a distraction. 

She rolls her eyes but leans forward to connect their lips anyway. Michael personally thinks it's a great minute make out session but he isn't so sure that whateverhernameis is feeling it. She pushes Michael off her and then stands up. "I gotta go," she says and the darts out of his room. 

Michael lays back on his bed and stares at his ceiling. 

"Fuck." 

\-- 

Luke hates parties. He hates Jack's parties the most though. Jack's parties are always wildly out of hand and someone usually gets arrested. Luke isn't even sure how many of Jack's parties have been busted by the cops but he knows it's a lot. It's a wonder that Jack isn't behind bars right now. Luke slightly resents Ashton for dragging him to one of Jack's parties where he's supposed to get over Michael. How can he focus on getting over Michael while at one of Jack's parties? Luke's going to be more worried about not getting date raped than finding a decent guy to possibly date or fuck or whatever Ash wants him to do. 

"Luke, I promise this is going to be good. I'll help you. We'll find a guy and then you'll be cured, okay? Okay," Ashton says as he drags Luke inside the hot, smelly, and overfilled house that Jack's party is at. 

Immediately Luke already wants to leave. He feels suffocated from the thick air and bodies close to his. He feels sick smelling the amount of drugs being smoked. He also sees a guy already passed out and Luke hopes he's alive. This really isn't Luke's scene. 

Ashton continues dragging Luke further inside the house and Luke hates it every bit more with each step. He wants to run out but Ash's grip is secure and there's no escape for him. 

Eventually they stop in the kitchen where Ashton finds two unopened beers and he hands one to Luke. 

"I know I don't have to tell you to be careful but be careful," Ash says after he opens his own beer. 

Luke rolls his eyes and then opens his beer as well. He takes a swig and tries not to cringe. He hates beer. He hates beer and he hates parties and he wants to leave. Now. But he promised Ash he'd try so he needs to hurry up and find a guy to suck face with. Luke's going to need to be more drunk for this. 

Michael wasn't going to go to Jack's party. He hates Jack's parties. They're always busted by the cops and Michael doesn't need that in his life. He has nothing against parties or Jack really but he can't get arrested. He prefers quieter parties because then he can at least somewhat know the other people attending and he doesn't have to feel paranoid the whole night. Since Michael strongly opposes Jack's parties he's surprised Calum managed to persuade him to attend one. Calum can be extremely persuasive. 

Michael regrets his decision the second he walks in the door and spots a tall blond standing in the back of the living room attempting to talk to a stocky guy with brown hair. Michael's never seen the guy and he's pretty sure Luke hasn't either so why are they talking? Why is Luke even here? Luke barely ever shows up at anyone's parties, much less Jack's. 

Michael considers leaving but decides he'd rather get drunk now that he's already here and the booze is free. After sending Luke a glare that the taller boy doesn't notice Michael stalks off towards the kitchen to drink as much alcohol as he can without passing out. Michael doesn't find it classy to pass out while drunk. He tries to avoid that as much as possible. Plus he's also pretty sure it's extremely unhealthy to be that drunk. Part of him also realizes being any level of drunk is unhealthy. He doesn't care though. 

Once in the kitchen he finds a bottle of vodka which he prays no one decided to drug. No one would drug a whole bottle, right? Michael shrugs and pours himself a glass. He prays one last time before taking a drink and relishing in the burn. He decides that he's definitely sticking to the strongest alcohol tonight. Michael needs to be drunk. 

Two hours later and Luke isn't any more drunk than he was when he arrived at the party. The beer Ashton handed him is now warm in his hand and only missing a few swallows. Luke just doesn't have the heart to drink right now. He's talked up many guys but none of them feel right and he's not the type to drink away his feelings. He'd rather sleep. Sleep away his feelings. That sounds nice. 

"So, um, your name is Lucy, right? That's kind of a weird name for a guy. Wait, are you a guy?" the man (Jake?) Luke is currently talking to says. 

Luke shakes his head and forces a smile. "It's actually Luke but you know what? I'm just gonna go. Nice talking to you." Luke turns to leave but is suddenly pulled back. 

"Wait. Wait, I'm sorry I forgot your name. I'm really drunk and you're really hot, wanna make out?" Jake asks and Luke absolutely does not want to make out but hopefully this will be enough to get Ashton off his back. Luke shrugs and then leans forward to kiss Jake. Jake's shorter than Luke so he moves closer to stretch himself higher. Luke thinks he also just wants the body contact but he doesn't mind too much. Jake is hot too. Unfortunately he tastes like stale beer and Luke wonders how long he has to kiss this guy to make it plausible to Ashton that he tried. After a few minutes Jake tries to grind against Luke and that's when he has to pull away. 

"I'm -- I'm sorry that was great. Really, it was, but I need to, uh, pee. Bye!" Luke says and quickly walks away from Jake. He kind of feels bad but not really. Now he's going to leave whether Ashton likes it or not. Ashton's a big kid, he can figure out how to get home on his own, right? Luke brought his own car anyway so he has the right to leave, yeah? Luke doesn't really care anymore. He hates parties and now he can't get Jake's dumb stale beer taste out of his mouth. He wants this horrible night to end. 

Luke stumbles out of the party after pushing through many bodies to make it to the exit and trips over another body once he's outside. The body groans and Luke glances down to see who he accidentally kicked. Holy fuck. It's Michael. 

"Michael?" he asks slightly perplexed but also not really surprised. Michael likes parties, maybe not Jack's parties in particular, but he goes to parties. Everyone knows that. 

"Yeah. Fuck, my head hurts," he mumbles and curls in on himself more. 

Luke isn't sure how aware Michael is of his surroundings. It's kind of cold outside and Luke's a little worried for his well-being. "Michael, hey, it's me, Luke. I'm going to take you home, okay?" Luke says as he bends down to Michael's level. Michael groans but nods his head. Luke helps Michael to his feet and supports his body weight while they slowly walk to Luke's car. 

Once at the car Luke struggles to unlock it and open the passenger door but he finally manages to do. Then he has to wrestle Michael inside but the drunk boy is mostly pliant under his care. The hard part is trying to move someone who isn't really sure what's happening. Eventually Michael's sitting upright in the seat and is buckled in. 

Luke quickly moves to his side of the car and slides into the driver's seat. He turns the car on and carefully pulls out of his parking space on the street. He drives down the darkened neighborhood streets at a moderate speed and glances over at Michael periodically. Luke knows where Michael lives but he doesn't really want to shorten his time with Michael. This could be his chance. Except Michael is really drunk and doesn't know what's going on. 

Luke sighs and then drives to the nearest convenience store. He leaves Michael in the car when he goes in and buys a six pack of water bottles. He pays the bored, middle-aged man at the counter and then speed walks back to his car. Michael didn't move at all while Luke was gone. He opens one of the bottles of water and hands it to Michael. Michael stares at the bottle for a really long time before he slowly drinks from it. His hands shake but he still manages to drink almost half the bottle. He lowers the bottle into his lap and then leans against the window. 

"Thank you," he says and his voice is rough and gravelly. Luke is taken aback at the gesture. Michael usually avoids Luke at all costs. It's actually a wonder that Michael's even in Luke's car right now. 

"You're welcome," Luke replies with a tentative smile that he knows Michael can't see anyway. 

"Can we just sit here for awhile? The movement makes me wanna puke," Michael asks quietly and then takes another drink of the water. 

"Uh yeah. Yeah, that'll be fine. Do you wanna listen to the radio, or one of my CDs, or nothing? I don't really know what you like specifically or if like your head hurts too much or -- " 

"Luke, shut up and put in a blink cd," Michael says suddenly and Luke stops speaking. He grabs one of his blink CDs and puts it in the cd drive. He hits play and then settles back in his seat. How did Michael know he likes blink? 

Everything hurts. The only thing anchoring Michael is the cool glass of the car window he's leaning against. He's pretty sure he'd float away if he wasn't resting his head against it. The water is starting to help but he knows he needs more. He thinks he saw Luke with a six pack but he isn't sure. He really hopes Luke bought more than one 16 oz water bottle. 

"I have 5 more bottles of water," Luke says as if he was reading Michael's thoughts. 

Michael looks at the boy sitting beside him in the car. He's holding the remaining water bottles in his lap and he's staring at Michael as if he's some kind of rare jewel. Michael can also detect a slight nervousness as if Luke expects Michael to disappear any second now. If it was anyone other than Luke maybe Michael would have already disappeared and found his own way home, but he can't do that to Luke. He should do that to Luke, but he can't. Luke doesn't know it but he's the only rare jewel in the car. 

Michael finishes two of the water bottles in the duration of the blink cd they're listening to. After he finishes the second bottle his eyes meet Luke's and Luke forgets how to breathe. He doesn't know if he's ever made direct eye contact with Michael before tonight. Michael's eyes are green and clearer than when Luke picked him up off the ground. Luke's scared he's going to say something he doesn't want to hear. 

"I'll take you, uh, home now," Luke mutters and then moves to put the car in reverse. 

"Wait," Michael rasps before Luke has managed to move the car. Luke freezes and slowly looks over at Michael. Michael seems surprised that he even spoke and clears his throat before continuing. "We should go to the river." 

The river is actually a popular hangout spot. Most people go there during the day to swim but a lot go at night to have bonfires or just to lay by the river. Luke doesn't really understand why everyone loves the river so much. Every time he goes he's not impressed or enchanted the same way everyone else is. He doesn't really want to go to the river but Michael does and Luke doesn't want to leave Michael. 

"Okay," Luke says and then continues backing up. 

They get to the river and after Luke parks he looks at Michael expectantly. What do they do now?

Michael grins and then pushes his door open, "Come on," he says before ducking out the door. 

Luke quickly unbuckles and exits his car. He locks the doors and then jogs to catch up to Michael. Once he's walking beside Michael the older boy looks over at Luke and he's still smiling. Luke is beginning to be weary of Michael's behavior; this is the most attention Michael has ever given Luke and it's worrying. 

"Where are we going?" Luke asks quietly as the pair walks along the riverbank. 

"We're already here," Michael answers. His body moves marginally closer to Luke's and their arms brush. A second later Michael is half a foot away from Luke. 

Michael doesn't know why he's being so nice to Luke. He's always been sort of drawn to the boy but he continuously buries it deep where he can't feel it. He also refuses to start anything since he knows he doesn't deserve Luke. Tonight he feels sort of infinite though like nothing can touch him so he's indulging his slight interest in Luke. He's brought Luke to one of his favorite spots by the river. It doesn't look like much to the untrained eye but Michael can see how great it is. It's a stretch of dark green grass and a huge oak tree that decided to grow close to the bank of the river or perhaps the river expanded to be closer to the tree. Michael loves the tree though because the trunk is huge, like abnormally huge, and has a strange shape where it sort of dips in on one side which leaves a small place to sit hidden from everyone else. Michael pulls Luke into this space and they barely fit. They're both over 6 feet tall and are all limbs. Luke is practically sitting in Michael's lap and he's sputtering like a fool. Michael finds it adorable. 

"Shh, calm down. I'm not going to murder you. Jeez," Michael says with a breathy laugh. 

Luke finally stops struggling to glare at Michael. He huffs and then settles into a comfortable position. "I've never seen this tree before," he comments while bending his knees to his chest. 

"It's my secret tree," Michael whispers because it feels appropriate. It is his secret. Sort of. 

"I like it," Luke whispers back and tilts his head to meet Michael's eyes. Luke's normally bright eyes are darker in the dim moonlight but still shockingly blue. It surprises Michael and he forgets how to breathe. 

"Me too," he replies after a moment when he remembers how to speak. 

Luke smiles softly before shifting again. He's keeping a small space between him and Michael so they're not touching at all but he'd be more comfortable if he leaned against Michael. Michael isn't sure what he wants Luke to do, or rather whether or not he wants to make the first move. Eventually Luke decides to make the move and he hesitantly presses his body against Michael's. He lets his head rest against Michael's shoulder but barely. His whole body feels stiff. 

"Michael, what are we doing? Why are you being nice?" he says quietly. 

The questions are almost swallowed by the night, but Michael reaches for them at the last second by replying, "I feel bad for you. Think you're cute. Thought I'd give you a chance." Michael's words taste like poison in his mouth. He can't believe what he just said. 

Luke doesn't believe Michael. Michael is lying through his teeth. Terribly. Luke shoves Michael's false words aside and instead cuddles further into the boy. He likes this close proximity to Michael. 

"Well, I like you," Luke whispers into Michael's shoulder. 

_I know_ Michael thinks before sighing and kissing the top of Luke's head. He can feel Luke smile and then sees it when Luke tilts his head up to gaze at Michael. "What?" Michael asks when Luke doesn't stop staring. 

"Nothing," Luke replies, obviously amused. He thinks Michael's cute when he's denying his feelings. Suddenly Luke stands up and extends his hand to Michael. "Come on," he ushers. Michael stares at Luke's hand in bewilderment before deciding 'fuck it' and laces his fingers with Luke's. 

Luke leads the pair away from the river and to a nearby park. Michael showed Luke his secret place and Luke wants to return the favor. He likes the feeling of Michael's hand in his as well. He's happy that Michael hasn't let go yet. Luke leads the pair to the swing set and releases Michael's hand to sit on one of the swings. Michael shrugs and then sits on the swing next to Luke. 

"So you like parks?" Michael asks while kicking some sand with the toe of his shoes.

"Yeah, especially at night when no one's around," Luke replies while pushing himself forward on the swing. He likes coming to this park to clear his head. No one knows he comes here except Ashton. 

"It's nice," Michael comments and then decides to swing as well. 

They swing together in silence for what feels like eternity to Luke but is probably only a few minutes before Luke jumps off his swing and then smiles back at Michael. "Jump. It's fun, I promise." 

Michael rolls his eyes but jumps off his swing anyway. He lands close to where Luke was grinning at him and he stumbles slightly. Luke steadies him and when their eyes meet he doesn't know who leans in first before they're kissing. 

Kissing Luke is not something Michael thinks about often but the few times he does he imagines Luke's lips to be soft and gentle. He imagines it to be a delicate sort of kissing. The reality of kissing Luke is better. Luke is gentle at first, hesitant and unsure of what Michael wants, but then he becomes more confident when he realizes Michael isn't pulling away but returning the kiss. Luke's lips are mostly soft, they're a little chap, but Michael likes how they feel against his. He likes how Luke grips his hips and pulls him closer to his body. He likes how Luke isn't shy about the kiss once he realizes Michael wants it too. Michael loves this moment and he wishes he didn't have to ruin it. But he does. 

"Lu-Luke. We can't. St-stop," Michael manages to say while pulling away. Luke drops his hands and steps away. There's almost two feet of distance between the boys and Michael misses the warmth. He also hates the look on Luke's face. He hates how crushed the boy appears before he quickly rearranges his expression into a neutral one. 

"I'll just, uh, take you home now, okay?" Luke says and then turns away to walk back to the car. 

The air is heavy with tension and Michael can almost feel the annoyance radiating off of Luke. It rolls off him in thick waves that tighten Michael's chest and make him gasp for breath. He knows he shouldn't feel this hurt, he stopped the kiss, but somehow he can't help it. Michael feels so sick and it's not because of his alcohol consumption earlier in the night. 

Luke drives them home in silence. He doesn't turn on the radio and Michael hates how apparent the tension between them is within the silence. Michael doesn't look at Luke any more than the blonde boy looks at him, which isn't at all. When Luke pulls up outside Michael's house the older boy silently exits the car and walks to his house. Luke's gone before he even reaches the front door. 

Luke can't believe how stubborn Michael can be. He really can't. He doesn't know what Michael's _thing_ is with him but he's going to find out. Maybe Michael isn't ready to admit his feelings yet but Luke is going to wear him down. Even though Michael possibly wounded Luke yet again he's going to continue to be as persistent as ever, more in fact. From now one Luke is not going to let Michael ignore him at school. Luke will not passively greet the older boy or wait for him to make the first move. Luke is taking matters into his own hands now. He can only hope it ends well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm already working on the next part and I'm already out of school so hopefully (cross your fingers (lmao another tss ref)) that it'll be up soon! 
> 
> talk to me on tumblr if you want :) 
> 
> lukesgoggles.tumblr.com


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke pursues Michael. Michael possibly caves.

Ashton actually found a decent guy for Luke, but Luke left way before Ashton could introduce him to his savior. Ashton still doesn't know where Luke was no matter how much he pesters Luke on the topic. It's been a week since the party and Luke has been significantly less moody. He also strangely hasn't been approaching Michael at all. Maybe part of that is because Michael himself hasn't been at school very much the past week. When he is he makes sure he 100 percent avoids Luke though. Ashton's noticed this new development and wonders what happened. They had to have talked at some point. Ashton's going to find out what happened tonight when he's at Luke's though. 

They're settled on the couch with popcorn and a movie playing on the tv when Ashton decides it's now or never. "You were with Michael the night of the party." It's a complete shot in the dark. He has no idea if his best friend and Michael were together but it's his best shot. 

Luke sputters beside him and he knows he chose right. "What?" he asks after composing himself. 

"You were with Michael," Ashton repeats slower. 

Luke shakes his head. "No, I wasn't. I didn't even see him at the party." 

"Liar," Ashton accuses while studying Luke's face. His nose is red which means he's lying. 

"I'm not," he replies and then turns away from Ashton to watch the movie. 

"Your nose is red so I know you were. What happened?" Ashton says after a few moments. 

Luke sighs and turns back to Ashton. "Okay so I found him really drunk on the front lawn and thought 'I should probably bring him home' so I helped him to my car to do that. Then we got water at a gas station because Michael really needed it. Once he was more sober he wanted to go to the river and then he showed me this cool tree. We kinda just sat and talked and it was so nice. Then I took him to the swings and we swung for awhile until I jumped off and told him he should too. He did and he landed so close to me. Then I don't know what happened, but we kissed, and it was amazing. Then he sorta broke my heart though, so I drove him home in the most awkward silence ever. Afterwards, I came home and decided Michael doesn't get to screw me like that so I'm going to bother the fuck out of him until he caves and tells me his _thing_ about me. He has a thing and he won't admit it." 

Ashton stares at his friend for probably a solid minute of awe before he says anything. "I -- uh -- that's quite a story. What's your, um, plan?" 

"I'm going to be more active about my confrontations with him. I know I mostly avoided him this week -- he's been avoiding me too -- but next week I'm going to start approaching him in the hallways more often. I'm going to make him pay attention to me. I'll ask to hang out relentlessly. Eventually he'll cave. I know this sounds really crazy, but it's got to work, right?" Luke asks, looking at Ashton with wide, pleading eyes. 

Ashton isn't so sure Luke's plan will work but he nods anyway. "Sure, Lukey. It'll work. I'll help you too." 

\-- 

"I still think you're kind of crazy," Ashton repeats for probably the millionth time in Luke and Ashton's friendship. Ashton doesn't approve of many of Luke's schemes, but always helps him nonetheless. Ashton is a true friend. Luke loves him. 

"I'm going to do this. It's not only about me anymore, remember? Michael clearly feels some things, and he needs to work them out. With me. Since they concern me. Obviously," Luke says as the pair approaches the school doors. 

Ashton huffs but smiles a second later. "Alright Lukey, whatever you say." 

Luke grins and then walks into the school with Ashton. They go to their lockers and Luke doesn't see Michael anywhere. He didn't really expect to but he was prepared to approach him if he did. When the warning bell rings Luke and Ashton split up to walk to their first period classes. Luke scans the halls as he walks to chemistry, but he's still doubtful that he'll see Michael. Luke doesn't usually see Michael until lunch. He suspects Michael skips a lot of morning classes. 

By the time Luke is back home and in his room he hadn't seen Michael once. That's okay. Michael has to show up eventually. Luke's plan will still work. He's tired of Michael holding all the cards. Luke is taking control finally. 

Michael doesn't show up for school the next week. Maybe Michael's telepathic, and knew what Luke had planned and hoped Luke would forget in a week. Luke hasn't forgotten, and the second he spots Michael walking down the hallway towards him Luke grabs the older boy's arm to stop him. Michael scowls at Luke and sighs. 

"What do you want?" he asks while glancing around the hallway. No one really notices them, and Luke can feel Michael relax. 

"I just wanna know if you're alright. You missed a whole week of school which is strange even for you," Luke says, knowing his concern leaks through in his voice. 

"I'm okay. I promise. I need to get to class. Please, don't talk to me, okay?" Michael says, and then hurries down the hall leaving Luke feeling more determined than ever. 

Later during lunch Luke spots Michael again and approaches him. When Michael notices Luke walking his way he immediately says goodbye to his friends and begins walking as fast as possible out of the lunchroom. Luke sighs and changes direction to leave the busy area. He catches sight of Michael in the empty hallway outside the lunchroom right before he enters the men's restroom. Luke goes there next. 

Michael's leaning against one of the sinks staring at the door probably waiting for Luke to enter. Luke gulps but stands his ground. Michael glares, but doesn't say anything. Luke decides to speak first. "Look, I'm not going to leave you alone until we talk out whatever the fuck it is that we have. You have some weird _thing_ about me and I want to know what it is. It's also rude to kiss me the way you did and then push me away. Really. Fucking. Rude. You can keep running or just tell me what's up. It's up to you," Luke says and is surprised that his voice never wavered throughout his whole speech. 

Michael grunts in reply and then stands up to leave. He doesn't say anything as he bumps Luke's shoulder on the way out. Luke sighs and wonders how long it'll take before Michael breaks. 

The next month consists of Luke speaking to Michael, and the older boy either ignoring him or giving short responses. Either way, he still hasn't given in to properly speak to Luke. Luke's starting to feel discouraged, but Ashton keeps insisting he shouldn't give up yet. Luke doesn't want to but he thought he could get Michael to at least _try_ to work some things out with Luke by now. He thought maybe they'd be like semi-friends or something. Apparently Luke's expectations were too high. 

Michael wasn't expecting Luke's persistence. He really wasn't. It's been a month since Luke confronted him in the bathroom and the boy is still confronting Michael relentlessly. Michael can feel his resolve beginning to crumble and he hates how weak he is deep down. He knows he has a thing for Luke but he likes to ignore it and he wishes Luke would to. Why can't he just move on? Michael isn't that great. Besides, he's been mean to Luke, why does Luke even try? Michael knows he needs to end this before they both go crazy and lose their minds. So tomorrow he's going to switch things up and approach Luke first. Fingers crossed his plan works. 

Luke would be lying if he said he wasn't surprised when Michael approached him the next day. He asked if Luke wanted to hang out at his place on Friday and of course Luke said yes that was the whole point of his plan, right? That's why Luke is now walking to Michael's house instead of his own on a Friday afternoon. Neither Luke nor Michael live that far from school, but Michael's house is slightly farther. Luke doesn't mind the extra walk though. The weather is nice and he actually enjoys walking. When he reaches Michael's house he knocks on the door and waits with his hands in his pockets, head down staring at his feet. He kicks at the cement stairs and begins to wonder if Michael was joking. 

Michael's door swings open and Luke looks up to see Michael leaning against the frame, a pair of sweatpants and a band tee on. His hair is messier than it was at school earlier and although he's trying to act relaxed he seems sort of frazzled. Luke finds that interesting. 

"Hi," Luke says when it appears Michael isn't going to do anything besides look adorable. 

"Hey, uh, you can come in," Michael replies and moves from the doorway so Luke can enter his home. 

Luke walks inside and kicks off his shoes when he notices the small  
pile by the door. He glances around the first level of Michael's house as he walks farther inside. There's pictures of Michael with his family hanging on the walls and the place smells like cinnamon. The living room looks well-lived in with a huge couch facing a tv that has an impressive DVD collection on a bookshelf close by. In the kitchen there's more pictures on the fridge as well as grocery lists and other miscellaneous reminders. Luke likes it; it's all very homey. 

Michael awkwardly stands in the kitchen while Luke awkwardly stares back. Neither of them seem to know what to do now. They're not drunk (at least Luke doesn't think Michael is) and they've never done this before. 

Luke swallows and then shifts his backpack. He forgot he was still wearing it. "Uh, do we wanna talk, or eat, or?" His question hangs in the air for awhile before Michael answers. 

"I'll grab some chips and soda and then we'll go to my room. You can drop your bag there or the living room or whatever. It doesn't matter. Mom and dad won't be home until later anyway. They both work the night shift today. So, um, yeah," Michael says and then moves to the fridge. Luke watches Michael gather snacks and the older boy gives Luke a look before they move to Michael's room. 

Michael's room is similar to Luke's in the way that the walls are plastered with band posters from various pop-punk, punk, and rock bands. Michael also has clothes scattered all around the floor which is something that Luke can also relate to. It occurs to Luke that he and Michael really aren't all the different from each other even if their social statuses at school beg to differ. 

Michael sets the snacks down on his desk and then sits in the swivel chair by it. He opens a can of Coke and then leans back in the chair. He raises his eyebrows at Luke who's still just standing in the doorway to his room, hands clutching his backpack straps. 

Luke clears his throat and then moves farther into the room. He drops his bag and then sits on the bed. "What did you wanna talk about?" he asks quietly as if he spoke any louder he'd scare Michael off. 

"What's your favorite color?" Michael asks and it's not at all what Luke was expecting. 

"Uh, red? I don't really know. It sort of changes," Luke answers and then asks, "What's yours?" 

"Blue," Michael replies almost instantly. Michael's always really loved the color blue and now he's starting to realize it may be because of Luke's eyes. He just thought it was because his mom liked to take him cloud gazing. Maybe he suppressed more feelings for Luke than he realized. Weird. 

"Michael, I love hearing your favorite color and all, but let's just get to it. We should really try to talk about us," Luke says a few moments later. He sounds almost pleading. 

Michael's not sure if he's ready for that. He crosses his legs and then slowly nods. "Uh, I guess I always felt a need to protect you cuz I hate bullies but like I didn't really do what I did for you for anyone else. Maybe somewhere along the way I realized you're really adorable. I suppressed a lot of it because I know I'm not good for anyone. I'm great at dropping people. You don't deserve that." Michael cannot, literally _cannot_ , believe he just revealed that much. There's just something about Luke pursuing the fuck out of him and his messy hair today that makes Michael want to at least _try_. 

"Oh," Luke says and Michael doesn't know how to take that. Is it a good 'oh' or a bad 'oh'? 

"So, you _do_ kinda like me?" Luke questions a few seconds later. His face is scrunched up in confusion, and it's really cute. Wait, what? 

"Um, yeah, I guess I do," Michael answers and then remembers their kiss. It was a great kiss. 

Luke smiles and Michael knows he's a goner. He knows that he always was and he doesn't know how to feel about that. "So, if you kinda like me...then, why'd you stop the kiss?" 

Michael shrugs. "It was good. I panicked. You deserve better than me. Now that you know how I sorta feel I don't think you'll want me anymore though. Like, part of it was the allure and the chase, right?" 

Luke shakes his head. It was never like that for him. Now that he knows Michael's feelings, he wants _more_ with Michael. "No, oh god, no. I want us to, like, actually do something with this information. Maybe try to be friends or date or something, I don't know," Luke mumbles the end part because he suddenly isn't feeling so confident about this anymore. He likes Michael and Michael likes him, but what do they really know about each other? Their favorite colors and hiding places? 

Michael straightens at the mentioning of becoming friends. They could really get to know each other and work from there, right? There's no point in dancing around each other anymore. "We should start hanging out together a lot. We can talk and get to know each other. We'll see what happens from there, okay?" he suggests while moving from his chair to the bed. He hates how defeated Luke looks right now. It's like he thinks he's ruined his chances with Michael. Michael's ready to confront his emotions and try. He needs to for himself and also Luke. 

"Okay," Luke replies and then leans against Michael's shoulder. Michael wraps his arm around Luke and pulls him closer. It should feel strangely intimate, but it just feels right. It feels like they've been doing it for years. That's the strangest part. Or the part where Michael really wants to kiss Luke's head, but isn't sure if he's allowed to. 

"Can I kiss your head? Is that too much?" Michael asks quietly and he feels Luke's body shake as he laughs. 

"Yeah, Mikey. You can kiss my head," he finally answers. Michael does so, and thinks he's not sure he'll be able to refrain from doing more in the near future. Now that's he's acknowledged and accepted his feelings he feels overwhelmed with adoration towards Luke. All he can hope is that Luke feels the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a little bit of the next part written. Everything is definitely going to be a lot of fluffy clemmings scenes from now on. 
> 
> Kudos and comments are welcome! 
> 
> If you want to, come talk to me on tumblr :) lukesgoggles


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't edit this and it's kind of short and fillery. I'm sorry /:

Luke and Michael have been hanging out a lot more the past few weeks. They've played video games at both of their houses, gone to the movies once (it was a disaster; Michael wouldn't stop talking), gone out for pizza many, _many_ times, and one time they went to Michael's tree. Tonight they're at Luke's house having a "study session". In reality, they opened their textbooks and then began talking about music. 

"I love blink and I think what they did was really cool, but I really get my inspiration from Good Charlotte. They were my first love and my first concert. I can't forget something like that," Luke says while tripping over some clothes to get to his closet where his guitar is. Earlier Michael saw a few of his picks lying around and asked if he played. Luke said he sort of did and Michael insisted he played a song. 

"I respect that. I get a lot of inspiration from All Time Low," Michael replies while watching Luke stumble with amusement. 

Luke finally reaches his closet and he struggles to open the door. More clothes in the way. He pushes them aside, makes a mental note to do laundry, and then pulls the door open. He grabs his guitar and then ventures back to his bed. He swipes a pick off his desk and then sits by Michael. 

"What do you want me to play?" he asks, and then begins fiddling with the tuning pegs after strumming once. 

"Uh, whatever you want," Michael replies, watching Luke tune his guitar. He notices that Luke's pretty good at doing it by ear and he's kind of jealous of that ability. Michael's not tone deaf, but he doesn't have perfect pitch either.

Luke thinks for a moment and then decides to play Remembering Sunday even though it's so sad. He stumbles through the chords at first trying to remember how to play the song, but after he gets the progression down he notices the moment when Michael recognizes the song. Luke sort of smiles before continuing the opening chords. He takes a breath and then sings. "He woke up from dreaming and put on shoes..." At the end of the song he looks up to see Michael discreetly trying to wipe his eyes. Luke's surprised. "Mikey, are you crying?" he asks. 

"What? No! You're really great," he replies with a smile. 

"Thanks, Mikey," Luke says and leans across Michael to set his guitar down. When he's sitting back in his place he can feel Michael's eyes on him again. He laughs and turns to Michael. He was going to joke about taking a picture so it'd last longer, but the way Michael's looking at him kills the words on his tongue. Michael's looking at him the way he did the night of the party. Luke has the same feeling he had right before they first kissed. He heart is racing and he can't think. Again, he doesn't know who moves first just that his lips are on Michael's, his hands resting on Michael's shoulders pulling him closer. 

For Michael it feels like he's finally breathing again. He's been waiting for the right moment to kiss Luke again and everything feels better now that he has. Luke pulled him closer, but it's not enough. Michael moves so he's in Luke's lap completely. He wraps his arms around Luke's neck effectively bringing him just that much closer. It's everything Michael has been waiting for, honestly. He never truly realized how much he shoved down until he confronted it all and began spending more time with Luke. 

Luke's hands are gripping Michael's waist; he wants Michael closer too. He didn't realize how much he missed kissing Michael and he can't believe they waited so long to do it again. He pulls away, breathless and smiles at Michael, "Why did we wait so long to do that?" he wonders. 

Michael laughs. "I don't know, but let's not stop." 

Luke rolls Michael under him and then leans down until their lips are almost touching. "I won't protest that." 

\-- 

Ashton never sees Luke anymore now that he's working things out with Michael. Ashton still has doubts about the relationship, but whenever he sees the two boys together they're obviously sickeningly in love. It makes him wanna puke. He never thought Luke would be the type to ditch his friends when he started dating, but Ashton supposes he should've expected it. He really misses Luke though. 

 

Later at school when Ashton spots Luke in the lunchroom he approaches him. Luke smiles when he sees Ashton walking over and Michael regards Ashton warily. 

"Hey Luke," Ashton says, smiling at his best friend while giving Michael a side glance. 

"Hey Ash! We haven't talked in ages. Maybe we should hang out this weekend, yeah?" Luke replies, moving to hug his friend. Ashton feels relieved when Luke brings up hanging out before he has to. Now he knows Luke's been missing him too, and he didn't forget their friendship. When they hug Ashton can feel Michael's eyes boring into him. After Luke pulls back, Michael immediately slings an arm around his waist and pulls him closer. Luke gives him a _look_ and then Michael drops the death glare he was giving Ashton. 

"Hi Michael," Ashton decides to say and the older boy only scoffs. 

Luke pokes Michael and then he sighs. "Hello Ashton," he says and Luke grins. 

"If you break his heart, I'll smash your face, alright?" Ashton says because although he's thought this many times he's never actually voiced it to Michael before. 

"Trust me I'd rather break both my legs than ever hurt Luke," Michael replies and suddenly Ashton isn't so against him anymore. 

"Well, uh, good," Ashton says while watching Michael relax. Maybe they could all be friends. 

On Saturday Ashton goes over to Luke's house and the they hang out most of the day. It feels just like old times, and Ashton is happy that Luke's new relationship hasn't changed theirs too much. 

"So, Luke, how exactly are things with Michael? He definitely seems more, er, protective than before," Ashton inquires while they're making popcorn for their movie night. 

"We make out a lot now," Luke replies, his cheeks tinted a faint pink. 

"Do you think he really cares about you?" Ashton asks because he's still worried Luke's going to get screwed over somehow. 

Luke shrugs. "He was really scared to really do anything with me because he tends to wreck everything; he didn't want to wreck me. I guess that shows he cares a lot." 

Ashton considers this for a few seconds before replying. "That's kind of sweet. I'm guessing you convinced him that you're not going to break?" 

Luke smiles and grabs the bowl of popcorn. "I mean, I was very persistent...but we also became good friends before we started the making out thing so I think we both know what we're doing finally." 

"That's really great. I'm happy for you, Lukey. You are happy, right?" 

Luke nods and laughs. "Yeah, I'm really happy. Anyway, any new developments in your love life?" 

Ashton feels his cheeks burn as he remembers the boy he found for Luke the night of the party. Chocolate brown eyes and raven hair, he was beautiful. He was also funny and loved a lot of the same things as Ashton, but too much that they're the same person. They've talked a lot since the party after Ashton explained what Luke decided to do. 

"Who is it!? Ashton Fletcher Irwin, you better tell me right now who has you tomato red or you don't get any popcorn!" Luke exclaims and lifts his arms so the popcorn is hovering over his head and well out of Ashton's reach. 

"Remember when I said I'd find you a guy to forget Michael?" 

"Yeah," Luke replies but doesn't move his arms. 

"Well, I found you a guy, Calum Hood, but then you and Michael did your thing, so then I had to tell Calum you weren't really interested anymore. Then we started talking more, and, I don't know, he's cool. I think I like him, I guess," Ashton explains. 

Luke lowers his arms and grins at Ashton. "Ash, that's so great! We have to all hang out like you, me, Michael, and Calum! It could so fun. Who would've thought we'd end up here?" Luke laughs and hits play on the first Harry Potter movie. 

Ashton also laughs before sitting next to Luke on the couch. They grin at each other for a few moments before finally focusing their attention on the movie. Neither of them honestly thought they would ever be this happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really sure where this is going anymore and I haven't been feeling inspired but hopefully I'll get something written soon :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Michael go on a date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry it took me so long to update! This chapter is really fluffy though...

"I want us to go out on a proper date -- actually, correction -- I'm taking you out on a proper date," Michael proclaims one afternoon while they're lying on Luke's floor and staring at his ceiling fan. Their hands are entwined and Michael's been absentmindedly playing with Luke's fingers. Luke keeps smiling every time Michael kisses his hand, and he enjoys this sort of honeymoon phase they're currently in. When Michael brings up the date Luke is barely surprised. 

"When is this date?" he asks, rolling slightly on his side to look at Michael. 

Michael rubs his hand on his chin as if he's thinking before replying, "Right now. Get up, we're going." 

Michael stands and pulls Luke with him. Luke laughs at Michael's spontaneity. Michael grins and kisses Luke briefly before continuing to pull the younger boy towards the door. Michael still isn't entirely sure where he wants to take Luke yet, but he has a few ideas. 

Once they're in the car and on the road Luke decides to speak. "Mikey, where are we going?" he wonders while staring out the window at the scenery moving past them.

"Babe, it's a surprise," Michael replies and can practically feel Luke's eye roll from the seat beside him. Michael doesn't seem to stop smiling the whole drive, especially when Luke places his hand facing up on the console for Michael to interlace their fingers. 

A few minutes later, Michael parks in the parking lot to a classy _as fuck_ restaurant that he knows doesn't require reservations, but they're still wildly underdressed for. His grandma brought him here once for a birthday, he absolutely hated it, but he thinks with Luke it'll be better. He's never taken any of his dates some place nice, Luke's special though, so Michael hopes this is appropriate (besides the fact that they're wildly underdressed). 

"Uh, Mikey, do you realize where we are?" Luke asks hesitantly while turning in his seat to look at Michael. 

Michael nods while unbuckling his seatbelt and gesturing for Luke to do the same. The blonde boy exits the car as well. He walks to the other side to meet Michael who immediately interlaces their fingers before pulling Luke towards the front entrance of the restaurant. Luke reluctantly follows his boyfriend (they are boyfriends, right?) and hopes he truly does know what he's doing. 

Once they're inside Michael smiles at the hostess who gives the pair a once over before returning the smile as well. She's dressed way nicer than both of them in a pressed white Oxford and black dress pants. Her brown hair is pulled back into ponytail with no flyaways sticking out. The rest of the restaurant matches her professional style. The patrons all look ready to meet the queen or someone equally elegant and there's expensive looking chandeliers hanging throughout the restaurant. Overall the place screams "classy" which Luke knows is something that neither him nor Michael are. 

"Table for two?" Michael asks, his smile still plastered on his face. Luke tries not to squirm with how out of place he feels. 

"Sure," the hostess replies and grabs two menus. She leads them throughout the restaurant and Luke finds himself move closer to Michael. He feels so out of place and he doesn't know how Michael is so confident. Luke can feel everyone look at them, and he can feel their judging stares. He wants to shrink to the size of an ant and runaway. 

"Here you go. Someone will be by to take your orders shortly," the hostess says before walking away. 

Michael slides into the booth and pulls Luke into the same side as him. Luke reluctantly slides so he's side-by-side with Michael. Michael gives Luke a reassuring smile before opening his menu. Luke opens his as well and quickly realizes he should've been taking French the past four years of his life. He has no idea what over half of the menu items are and he doesn't think Michael knows either. 

"Uh, Mikey, why are we here? Like, I truly appreciate the gesture, but why? I can't even read 90% of my menu. I mean, can you? I really, really like you and I love that you're trying to impress me or something, but we could've gotten pizza or whatever. It still would've made me happy, as long as you were with me, you know that, right?" Luke says after a few minutes of struggling to comprehend his menu. 

Michael sighs and turns to Luke. He grabs Luke's hand and pulls it close to him, rubbing his thumb along the top of Luke's hand. "Baby, I know this place is way out of our league and I can't really read the menu either, _but_ you did say you'd be happy as long as you're with me and I'm happy as well. I know this seems way over the top, but I think we'll enjoy it...Or, like, ditch to get pizza after having a little fun, yeah?" Michael replies, and Luke can see the glint in his eye that means they'll probably get in trouble. 

"Oh my god, Michael, I cannot believe you dragged me here so we could get kicked out." Luke laughs. 

Michael shrugs and then turns back to his menu. "So, what are you gonna order?" 

Luke rolls his eyes and then looks at his own menu again. He thinks he can read the word "chicken" based off his knowledge of Spanish so he's going to go with that. "I'm going to get chicken." 

Michael grins and nods. "That's a solid choice. I might have to agree with you on that, or maybe get _Pan bagnat_." 

Luke smiles, recognizing the word for "bread", and nods as well. "Sounds good, Mikey." 

The waitress appears a few moments later and asks for their orders. Luke opens his mouth to answer her when Michael clears his throat instead. Luke glances at Michael and hopes he won't cause too much trouble. 

"Actually, I have a few questions about your dishes," Michael says, his smile ever present. 

The waitress, also smiling, nods, and then asks, "What questions do you have, sir?" 

"Well, I was wondering if you could, I don't know, translate the menu for me? My French is completely non-existent," Michael replies. 

The waitress continues to smile before she names each item on the menu and describes the dishes. Michael nods in the appropriate places and thanks her when she finishes. 

"Do you need more time or are you ready to order?" she asks. 

Michael sighs and closes his menu. "Thank you so much for being patient and kind, but I don't think this restaurant is really my boyfriend and I's taste. Everything truly does sound delicious, but I'm afraid we have to go. I'm so sorry for the inconvenience. I really am," Michael says while subtly pushing Luke towards the end of the bench seat. 

"Uh, I'm so, so, sorry," Luke apologizes as he slides off the seat to stand up. He really does feel bad that Michael dragged them here just to leave. Luke wrestles his wallet from his back pocket and then hands the waitress a 20. "I'm really sorry," he says again before Michael's dragging him out of the restaurant. 

Once they're outside Luke slaps the back of Michael's head. "Ow!" he exclaims and rubs the spot. "What was that for?" 

"For being rude to that poor waitress," Luke huffs and detaches their hands. He moves so there's distance between them as well. 

Michael stares at Luke incredulously for a second before he exhales. "I apologized like a million times. You know this place was too fancy. We should've never came. I don't know why I took you here. I'm sorry, okay? I'm really sorry. Please, forgive me. Luke, please, I'll make it up to you," Michael pleas, his voice cracking at the end, and Luke's scared he's going to cry. 

Luke opens his arms and pulls Michael to his chest. "Shh, it's okay. I'm sorry for overreacting. Let's just get pizza or something, alright? I forgive you." 

Michael readjusts himself so he can properly see Luke and then nods. He leans up to kiss the blonde and Luke feels breathless even if the kiss was brief. "Okay, let's go get pizza." 

They end up at a pizza joint that's fairly small, but everyone orders from. The building itself only holds a few tables since most people get delivery, so Luke and Michael have the whole place to themselves besides the staff. They moved the chairs so they were next to each other and Michael keeps trying to feed Luke slices of pizza. He keeps missing though and getting sauce all over Luke's face. Luke can't stop laughing, but attempts to wipe the sauce off every time. Michael shakes his head fondly before lifting a hand to properly wipe the sauce from Luke's face. His breath fans over Luke's face and Luke sharply intakes a breath. Michael smiles and then leans forward to kiss Luke. Luke returns the kiss and even tangles his hand in the front of Michael's shirt to hold the older boy close to him. Michael pulls away and rests his forehead against Luke's. "I really, really like you," he whispers the confession as if it's a secret, as if he's afraid that if he says it too loud it'll be taken away from him, that it won't be for only Luke. 

Luke smiles and whispers back, "I really, really like you too." 

After their spontaneous first date, Luke tells his mom that he's going to sleep over at Ashton's even though he's actually staying with Michael. 

"Will Ashton even cover for you?" Michael asks after Luke hangs up the call with his mom. 

Luke shrugs before texting Ashton. 

To Ashton: I'm sleeping at yours if mum asks

From Ashton: ur a noob 

To Ashton: love u 2 

"He'll cover for us," Luke replies while still grinning at his phone. Ashton tries to be difficult, but he really cares. 

"Really? He seems like a great friend," Michael says and then pulls Luke down into his lap. Luke yelps in surprise but quickly readjusts himself so he's cuddling Michael. 

"He is," Luke replies and nuzzles his face into Michael's neck. "I like this." 

"What?" Michael asks, rubbing a hand up and down Luke's back. 

"Cuddling with you," Luke mumbles into Michael's neck. 

"I like it too," Michael replies and turns his head to kiss the top of Luke's head. He can feel Luke smile against his neck which makes him smile as well. He feels warm and happy with Luke in his arms. He doesn't want the feeling to end. 

"You feel like home," Luke whispers and Michael almost doesn't hear him. 

"I'm sorry it took me so long to let you in," Michael says because he isn't sure what else to say. Luke's right. It _does_ feel like home, being with Luke. 

"'S 'kay. You're here now," Luke replies and kisses Michael's neck. 

"Yeah, I am," Michael agrees and pulls Luke into a proper kiss. They spend the rest of the night cuddling and kissing occasionally. It's perfect for them, and neither wants anything to change.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Double dating and steamy romance!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the smut. It's so bad and it's most of the chapter too...I'm really sorry. (and I didn't check for spelling errors I'm a mess honestly) 
> 
> So, uh, anyway, enjoy?

The park is deserted as it always is at 2 in the morning. The moon is high in the sky, only half full but still shining brightly down on the boys sitting in the cool grass. There's a cool breeze that sways the grass and causes the boys to shiver every few minutes. They had gone to see a movie earlier where only Ashton and Calum were actually trying to pay attention. At some point Michael had ended up in Luke's lap and that was when Ashton had told them that they needed to go or watch the movie. Luke muttered something along the lines of "yes, dad" while Michael snickered and then they stumbled out of the theater. Ashton and Calum finished the movie while Michael and Luke did only God knows what. 

Now they're at the park though. Luke is huddled against Michael with the older boy's hands in his hair. They both have a ridiculous grin on their faces because they're happy. Ashton and Calum are sitting with space between them and keep looking away when caught staring at each other. Ashton wants to puke watching his friend smile like a dork and Luke wants to push Ashton into Calum's lap. 

"How freaked would they be if I actually pushed Ash into Calum's lap?" Luke whispers conspiratorially to Michael. 

Michael's chest rumbles as he laughs quietly. "They'd be _sooo_ freaked for, like, a minute, but then they'd get over it. Do you want me to distract Calum?" 

Luke turns his head to see Michael's face. He shakes it and sighs. "Nah. We should just leave and let them be alone." 

Michael smiles and then kisses Luke's forehead. "Alright, babe. Whatever you want." 

Luke hums in content before wiggling out of Michael's grasp. "We're gonna go. You guys can stay though, and, uh, you know," Luke says and then turns to pull Michael up. 

Michael stifles a laugh when he sees the panicked expressions on Ash and Cal's faces. "Yeah, we're going. You guys really should stay though." 

Luke and Michael begin walking away, but hear footsteps not even two minutes later. 

"Luke, wait!" Ashton calls and they halt. 

Luke turns to his friend and smiles. "What?" 

"I don't know what to do. You can't just leave me like this!" he exclaims while wildly flinging his arms about his body. Luke doesn't think he's ever seen his friend this worked up about a date before. Luke gives Michael a look and the older boy nods before turning to walk a short distance away. 

Luke frowns slightly at his best friend. "You really like Calum, huh?" 

Ashton nods and finally seems to calm down. "Yeah. Yeah, I do. Luke, I don't think I've ever liked someone this much. He's just so -- he's really great, I guess. I feel like great doesn't even begin to cover it though. I really like him and I don't want to mess it up. Luke, what do I do?" 

"You're overthinking it. First, you shouldn't even be over here talking to me. You should be with him, telling him how cute he is, or whatever. Second, just be yourself, okay? You're an amazing guy too and Calum will love you for who you are. I can tell Cal's a good guy. I don't think he'd turn you down. I mean, he's still sitting over there waiting for you. That has to mean something. I love you, Ash, and you're not going to mess this up. Be yourself and it'll be okay. I promise," Luke says and opens his arms for a hug. 

Ashton wraps his arms around Luke's waist and buries his head in Luke's neck. "You're the bestest friend ever," he says and Luke pushes him back. 

"I know. Now go get your man." 

Ashton smiles one last time before he walks away to rejoin Calum on the grass. Luke can't stop smiling either because he's happy for his friend. He knows Ashton will be on his level of contentedness in no time. 

When Michael sees that Ashton left he walks over to Luke and wraps his arms around the younger boy's waist. He hooks his chin on Luke's shoulder and mumbles, "He'll be okay, right?" 

Luke nods. "Yeah. He'll be alright." 

Luke turns around to face Michael and leans down to kiss him. Michael's hands tighten around his waist and Luke tilts his head to deepen the kiss. Michael groans after a few minutes so Luke pulls away. "Yours or mine?" he whispers. 

"My parents are out of town to visit my grandparents, so mine," Michael replies and begins tugging Luke towards the car. 

Luke laughs at Michael's eagerness and stops to pull him back. He leans down so his lips are by Michael's ear before he says, "What's the rush?" 

Michael never in a million years would've thought he'd be so turned on by someone asking him "What's the rush?" but Michael swears his dick twitched at Luke's words. 

"Oh god. Luke, you're going to be the death of me," Michael groans but doesn't attempt to move away from Luke. 

Luke chuckles, kisses the spot below Michael's ear and then pulls away. "Let's go," he says and begins walking towards the car. Michael still feels dizzy from the close proximity he previously shared with Luke, but manages to slowly follow Luke to the car. 

Luke gets to the car before Michael and leans against the driver's side of it while he waits for Michael to catch up. He knows what his actions did for Michael and he's excited to continue. He's been waiting for this day _for years_ so he's going to make it last. Once Michael made it to the car he dropped his keys because Luke trapped him against the side of the car. Michael's breath hitched when he felt Luke lean down to whisper in his ear again. "Mm, gonna fuck you so good tonight, baby. Or maybe you'll fuck me? We'll see," Luke whispers and he can feel Michael shiver. 

"Lu-Luke. We need to get home first. Stop it," Michael says and his voice manages to sound mostly put together. He's surprised at that because his whole body feels like it's on fire. 

Luke steps away and picks up the keys. "Here ya go. I'm sorry." 

Michael smiles weakly and takes the keys from Luke. "'S 'kay, Lukey. Just...save the dirty talk until we're safely home, okay?" 

Luke nods and then kisses Michael. Michael tangles his hands in Luke's hair, tugging gently causing Luke to groan. "Fuck, okay. Okay. We gotta go," Michael says pushing Luke away from him. 

Luke laughs and then walks over to the passenger side. He slides in and buckles up. Michael is moving so fast he has to try five times before he seat belt buckles. Luke can't help but laugh and Michael keeps glaring at him. Finally they start the drive home which fortunately isn't too long. 

Once they're inside Michael's house Michael barely has time to kick his shoes off before Luke's pushing him up against the nearest wall. "Shit, Luke. I really like this side of you, but go easy, alright?" Michael says after Luke ducks down to kiss his neck. 

"'M sorry. I've been thinking about this for so long," Luke replies and then backs off a little. 

Michael lifts a hand to Luke's cheek. "Really, it's alright, but shouldn't we slow it down? I'm pretty sure you're, like, in love with me, and I know I'm working my way there -- just -- can we go slow?" 

Luke nods. "Yeah. We can go slow." Luke leans forward to kiss Michael but then remembers something he wanted to do. "I'm still gonna pin your arms above your head though." 

Michael laughs and nods. "Okay, Luke." 

Luke grins as well and then lifts Michael's arms up. He kisses Michael, slow and deep. Michael licks his lips and he allows Michael to lick the inside of his mouth. Luke moves his hips closer to slowly grind against Michael. It's not long before they're both panting and realizing they're wearing too many clothes. 

"Bedroom. Naked," Luke says stepping away from Michael. Michael's eyes are blown wide, his lips are swollen as he nods before walking down the hall to his room. Luke follows after him, after admiring his ass, and walks into the room to see Michael toppling over as he takes his pants off. Luke rushes to catch him before he hits the ground and Michael smiles at him appreciatively. "Damn skinny jeans," he mutters before finally pulling them off. 

Luke kisses his bare shoulder and hums. "It's alright." 

Michael leans back into the touch for a moment before he realizes Luke is still fully clothed. "Hey. You gotta strip too." 

Luke smiles and gestures to the bed. Michael climbs on the bed and leans against his headboard. He watches as Luke pulls his shirt off and then struggles to yank his own skinny jeans off. Michael likes seeing that Luke's still human even when he seems like a sex god right now. 

"Hey, stop laughing!" Luke pouts and throws his pants to the other side of the room. 

"Sor-sorry," Michael gasps between laughs. Luke's just so _leggy_. 

Luke rolls his eyes and then asks. "Where's the stuff?" 

That sobers up Michael's laughs pretty quick as he gestures towards his dresser. "Top drawer under the socks." 

Luke opens the drawer and moves some socks before taking out the small bottle of lube Michael keeps there and one of the condoms. He walks back to the bed and sits on the edge. He studies Michael for a second before asking, "You alright?" 

Michael nods and smiles. "Yeah, I'm good. You?" 

Luke nods as well. "Yeah. C'mere." 

Luke leans closer to Michael and Michael crawls over to meet him halfway. They kiss and Luke slowly pushes Michael back onto the bed. He moves his lips to Michael's neck and the older boy pushes up trying to find any friction that he can. Luke lightly laughs before moving on his hands to Michael's hip to hold him down. "Be patient," he whispers and continues kissing down Michael's body. His teeth scrape against Michael's nipples causing Michael to squirm again. 

"Lu-" he begins. 

"I know, baby, I know," Luke murmurs and then kisses down Michael's stomach. When he reaches the top of the older boy's boxers he waits a second before pulling them off. Michael's cock springs up, hard and red at the tip. Luke thinks it's beautiful. Is it weird to find a cock beautiful? he wonders before wrapping his lips around the tip. He swirls his tongue around the head and refuses to take anymore even though Michael is whimpering and pleading above him to do just that. He removes his mouth with a quiet popping sound and then reaches for the bottle of lube. "Gonna open you up now. Can you roll over for me?" 

Michael nods and then rolls over. He groans as he cock drags against the sheets. He pushes down in an attempt at relief but Luke tsks and stills his hips. "So needy," he chides and then Michael feels his finger at his hole. "Tell me if it hurts or if you want me to stop, okay?" Luke says. Michael doesn't reply at first and Luke doesn't move. "Mikey, did you hear me?" 

"Yeah. Yeah. I'll let you know. Promise," Michael responds and then Luke's working the first finger inside him. Michael hasn't been fucked in a long time so the finger stings at first but he quickly adjusts after Luke begins moving the finger. "Feels good. So good," Michael mumbles. 

"Ready for another?" Luke asks and Michael almost wants to cry at how caring Luke's being. He's going to probably fuck Michael into tomorrow but he keeps making sure Michael's alright. 

"Yes. Yeah. Oh my god, please," Michael replies and moans as Luke gently pushes another finger in. Luke's pace picks up after the second finger and Michael can barely contain his moans. He pushes back onto Luke's fingers and begins mumbling incoherently after Luke finds his prostate. "Shit, shit, oh fu-fuck, Lu-Luke, oh gooood," he drags the O out, his voice slowly reaching a higher pitch. 

"Alright. I think you're ready," Luke declares and pulls his fingers out. Michael groans at the loss and then feels Luke rolling him onto his back again. "I wanna see you're beautiful face," Luke explains while opening the condom package. And that, well, fuck. Michael doesn't remember the last time someone wanted to see his face during sex. He doesn't remember feeling so cared for either. His chest swells with love and he wonders if it's too early, too much, to say that to Luke. After Luke finishes rolling the condom on and lubing his cock he glances down at Michael with a smile. "Are you ready? Remember to tell me -- " 

"If it hurts or I wanna stop. Got it," Michael finishes returning the smile. God, Luke is so beautiful and he loves Michael more than he deserves. He doesn't deserve this. 

Luke takes a deep breath and exhales. "Okay, I'm just going to-- " 

"Wait!" Michael suddenly exclaims without thinking. What is he doing? His heart is racing and Luke's looking at him with so much concern. 

"Yes?" Luke asks and pulls back a bit. 

"I - I love you," Michael says. 

Luke leans down to kiss Michael. "I love you too," he whispers when he pulls away. "Can I show you now?" 

Michael nods after kissing Luke one more time. "Yeah. Go." 

Luke stays close as he slowly pushes in. They both groan and Michael grips Luke's forearm to try to distract himself. Luke peppers kisses all over Michael's face and waits for him to relax. "I got you," he whispers and kisses Michael deeply. When he pulls away Michael nods so Luke begins moving. He keeps a steady pace that makes Michael's toes curls and he keeps whispering how pretty Michael is and how much he loves him. 

"Mm, Luke, I'm so close, so, so close," Michael mumbles after awhile. 

Luke kisses Michael and then readjusts so he can get a deeper angle. His thrusts become deeper and faster making Michael tangle his hands into the sheets. "Fuck, fuck," he mumbles. 

"Are you gonna cum for me, princess? You look so beautiful splayed out for me, taking my cock so well. Come on, baby. Wanna see you cum. Want to see how beautiful you look," Luke says and then wraps his hand around Michael's cock. He begins fisting Michael's cock to the same speed as his thrusts and that's all it takes to send Michael over the edge. He clenches around Luke causing his orgasm as well. Luke rides out both of their highs before slowly removing himself from Michael and disposing of the condom. He kisses Michael's temple and mumbles a "be right back" before disappearing out of the room. He returns with a damp washcloth and cleans Michael up. Then he crawls into the bed and pulls Michael to his chest. "Love you," he says. 

"Love you too," Michael sighs, kisses Luke's chest and then falls asleep not long after. 

In the morning Luke wakes up to texts from Ashton screaming about making out with Calum and somehow he knows they're all going to be alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this was a really shitty ending but I was feeling the finality when I got to the end of this. I don't really know what else the characters have left to do. Thank you so much for reading this and appreciating it and stuff. I love you all and think you're all cute. 
> 
> talk to me on tumblr? lukesgoggles

**Author's Note:**

> I'm already working on the next part and I'm already out of school so hopefully (cross your fingers (lmao another tss ref)) that it'll be up soon! 
> 
> talk to me on tumblr if you want :) 
> 
> lukesgoggles.tumblr.com


End file.
